Ottawa Events and Festivals

(Ottawa, Ontario - ON, Canada)

Ottawa is a popular city and visitors are well catered for in terms of annual festivals and local events, with plenty of things to see and do throughout the Ottawa calendar. Canada Day, on July 1st, is a national holiday throughout the country and always celebrated in Ottawa, with a number of exciting events during the day and evening.

Each year in February, the Winterlude Festival is one of Ottawa's most appealing and unusual events, where the frozen Rideau Canal becomes the world's longest ice-skating rink, attracting huge crowds of both skaters and spectators. Other notable festivals and community events in the Ottawa area include the Canadian Tulip Festival in May, the Le Franco Festival in June, Ottawa's International Jazz Festival in July, the Central Canada Exhibition in August and the Ottawa Folk Festival in August.

National Public Holidays

1st January - New Year's Day

Third Monday in February - Family Day (Alberta)

Monday closest to 17th March - St. Patrick's Day (Newfoundland)

March or April - Good Friday and Easter Monday

Monday closest to 23rd April - St. George's Day (Newfoundland)

Monday before 24th May - Victoria Day

24th June - Fete Nationale / St. Jean Baptiste Day (Quebec)

1st July - Canada Day (known as Memorial Day in Newfoundland)

Monday closest to 13th July - Orangeman's Day (Newfoundland)

First Monday in August - Civic Holiday

Third Monday in August - Discovery Day (Yukon)

First Monday in September - Labor Day

Second Monday in October - Thanksgiving

11th November - Remembrance Day

25th December - Christmas Day

26th December - Boxing Day

Calendar of Festivals and Events 2014 / 2015

January

There are no significant festivals and events in the month of January at Ottawa

February

Winterlude / Bal de Neige - early February, held over three weekends, with a host of festivals around Ottawa's frozen canal and Dows Lake, featuring many spectacular ice sculptures

Canadian Ski Marathon - mid-February, held on the second weekend each February, with over 200 skiers of all abilities

March

There are no significant festivals and events in the month of March at Ottawa

April

Ottawa Art Festival - mid-April, a major fine arts event, with more than 100 artists from around Canada, held at the Aberdeen Pavilion

May

Canadian Tulip Festival - late May, a huge and extremely colorful event, when central Ottawa is decorated with more than 200 different varieties of tulips, freshly picked from Holland. Highlights include parades, parties, outdoor concerts, car rallies and fireworks

June

Alcatel Ottawa International Children's Festival - early June, five-day event aimed at families and children aged between 4 to 15 years old, with theatrical performances, dance and music

Franco Ontarien Festival - mid-June, celebrating Canada's historic French origins and culture, with music, local arts and crafts, and many interesting exhibitions